


from me to you

by viktory_arts



Category: Danny Phantom, Gravity Falls
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Attempt at Humor, Coming Out, Drama & Romance, F/M, Family, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Identity Reveal, LGBTQ Themes, M/M, Minor Violence, Secret Identity, Teen Romance, danny questioning if he is really alive or not
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2020-10-07
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:53:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,625
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26806168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/viktory_arts/pseuds/viktory_arts
Summary: Danny Fenton had been expecting a normal summer. As normal as a summer for a half-ghost superhero can get, at least. But when his mom says they're going to Oregon to a small town called 'Gravity Falls' to visit his mom's brother, Dan, Danny just had an instinct that this wasn't going to be his average summer.Whether or not that will be a good thing remains to be seen.
Relationships: Danny Fenton & Dipper Pines, Danny Fenton & Jazz Fenton, Danny Fenton & Mabel Pines, Danny Fenton/Dipper Pines, Dipper Pines & Mabel Pines, Ford Pines & Stan Pines, Jack Fenton/Maddie Fenton, Other Relationship Tags to Be Added
Comments: 18
Kudos: 155





	1. chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> hello! i'm now obessed with danny phantom and gravity falls so have this piece of shit.

“We’re going  _ where _ now?” Danny asked his mother for what seemed to be the fiftieth time. Maddie, his mother, sighed and ate another bite of the lasagna that she had made for dinner before she responded again.

“We’re going to a place in Oregon called Gravity Falls,” she repeated. She gave her son a small look of sympathy. “I know it’s not what you wanted to do this summer, but I think getting out of town and visiting family would be good for all of us.” Danny clicked his tongue and leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms with a stubborn expression on his face. 

“Tucker, Sam, and I already had plans to hang out all summer! I can’t just bail on them.” He explained with a touch of moodiness only a teenager could produce. His dad, Jack, butted in before his wife could speak again, his boisterous voice booming loudly in the quiet tenseness of the dinner table.

“Danny-o! Don’t you want to hang out with your family and meet your cousins?” He asked.  _ ‘Not really’ _ thought the young Fenton, but he just sighed, succumbing to his mom and dad’s will.

“I guess,” Danny said tiredly and he uncrossed his arms to pick up his fork. He began to eat his lasagna again, but much quicker this time so that his mother couldn’t announce any more summer-ruining plans. Thankfully, she didn’t and the teenager could finish his dinner in peace. 

Jazz, his sister, came up to him after dinner, tapping his shoulder lightly. Danny turned to see her eyes lit up brightly. 

“I think this will be good for you, Danny. You may finally get a break from your… extracurricular activities.” She said and the brother snorted.

“Nice save there,” he snarked before sobering up seconds after. “I guess it’ll be nice to be away from all the stress of being a half-dead superhero…” He trailed off, before he shook his head and let out a bitter laugh.

“Though it’s doubtful that it’ll actually be a break. Knowing my luck, there’ll be a portal to the Ghost Zone  _ in _ Gravity Falls- or whatever it’s called.” He paused for a few moments before an idea suddenly struck him. “What if there’s a ghost trying to tear up the town while we’re gone? I won’t be here to stop them!” He whisper-shouted with no small amount of panic, but Jazz placed a placating hand on his shoulder. Her violet eyes were warm.

“Everything will be fine,” she assured, “Sam and Tucker will take care of anything that’s threatening the town.” Danny didn’t feel much relief at that, but he nodded anyways, if just to placate his sister.

“Yeah, I guess…” He shrugged. It wasn’t in his control where he went this summer. He’d just have to find a way to get back to Amity if something happens to go awry and Tucker and Sam can’t handle it. Jazz gave a warm smile and patted Danny’s shoulder before she went upstairs to her bedroom.

“I think you’ll have fun,” she paused, “and who knows? Maybe you’ll make some new friends in Gravity Falls.” She said and Danny ‘tched’ in response. 

“Yeah, whatever.” Danny rolled his eyes and plopped down on the couch to turn the TV on to watch the movie he had been watching the night before. While he wasn’t looking, his sister gave him a look of sympathy and whispered under her breath.

“I hope you make some new friends, Danny. Maybe some normal ones.”

***

After the plane landed in the city nearest to Gravity Falls, the family of four packed up the (thankfully normal) Fenton Car and started their hour-long drive to the small town. Danny, as soon as he had gotten off the plane, texted Sam and Tucker to make sure everything was fine and nothing was going wrong.

_ Me, 1:42 PM _

_ everything going alright in amity? any ghost attacks? _

_ Sam, 1:43 PM _

_ No, doofus. We’ll let you know if anything changes. _

_ Tucker, 1:43 PM _

_ yeah man, leave it to us. we’ve got it covered here. just have fun with your family. _

Danny bit his lip, fingers rapidly typing responses and deleting them. Jazz looked over and read his texts over his shoulder before he could cover them and gave him a look. Danny sighed and finally typed out a response after a few more minutes of contemplating over what to say.

_ Me, 1:48 PM _

_ ok. _

After about five minutes of waiting for Sam or Tucker to text that something was going horribly wrong- like Pariah Dark waking up again, Vlad being a fruitloop, ectopusses running rampant,  _ anything _ \- Danny realized he was probably being stupid and shut off his phone. He was tapping his thigh with his fingers and bouncing his leg up and down before Jazz placed a hand on his shaking leg.

“Everything will be alright, Danny. They’ll text you if something goes wrong.” She whispered and Danny sighed, forcibly relaxing his body, and nodded slightly. Jazz went back to her psychology book, something only  _ she _ would bring to a family vacation. 

Danny held his head on his palm, and looked out the window of the car, watching the forest of evergreens go by. His dad was eating some sort of snack that he had picked up at the gas station, probably something with fudge in it. His mom was (thankfully) the one driving. 

_ ‘Maybe this won’t be so bad,’ _ Danny thought to himself, his shoulders finally untensing after hours on the flight of being so stiff. He settled in to take a short nap till the end of the drive, bringing out his earbuds when his dad suddenly shouted.

“Let’s play the alphabet game!” Jack said exuberantly and Danny groaned loudly, running a hand down his face in annoyance.

_ ‘Maybe not, then.’ _

***

An hour of car-ride games later, a large sign that displayed the words  _ ‘Gravity Falls’ _ stood as the family drove by. Danny and Jazz let out a sigh of relief as their dad was thoroughly distracted by their mom talking about stories of her older brother Dan. 

“I haven’t seen Dan in so long!” Maddie waved a hand around in excitement. Jack nodded, chewing on a  _ SlimJim _ . She looked through the rearview mirror at Danny, who had been checking his phone for updates from Sam and Tucker (there weren’t any). He felt like he was being watched and looked up to see his mother’s violet eyes looking at him warmly through the mirror.

“You know, Danny, I named you after my brother.” She said. Jack nodded and turned around to look at his son with a large smile on his face.

“We were going to name you after my father, Bartholomew, but your mom thought Daniel sounded nicer.” His dad grinned and Danny shook his head, slightly perturbed.

“Bartholomew?” He whispered and Jazz snorted, of who he gave a glare to. That just made her giggle harder, and he lightly slapped her shoulder. She leaned in to whisper.

“Bartholomew Phantom, hero of Amity Park.” Danny slapped her again, a little harder this time. “Ow!” She grumbled and rubbed the spot on her arm where Danny had slapped. She glared at him, but Jack suddenly spoke up again.

“You were almost Bertha, Jazzy-pants,” he said almost wistfully and Danny coughed to cover his laugh.

_ “Bertha?!” _ Jazz yelled incredulously, which just made Danny laugh even more, to which she sent a glare his way. Jack turned around again to look at his daughter with a confused look on his face.

“What’s wrong with Bertha? That was my mom’s name.” He still sounded confused and Jazz blinked her violet eyes and let out a breath, leaning back in her seat. Danny mouthed  _ ‘Bertha’ _ and she almost growled at her brother. Thankfully, the car stopped suddenly, which gave the siblings pause.

When they looked outside, they realized they were parked at a cabin surrounded by evergreen trees. From what Danny could see, there was a wood-chopping station, a red chair sitting outside, and a saw above the door frame. There were a few axes lying about, one stuck in a tree stump at the wood-chopping station, and the other was lying near a moss-covered RV. Then Danny saw them.

There was a large-built man with red hair wearing a black and gray hat. He had on overalls and mud-covered work boots. Standing next to him was a girl with long red hair, a little darker than Jazz’s, with a baseball cap that had a blue pinetree on it. She was wearing a green flannel with jeans and brown combat boots. Then there were three boys of varying ages, all wearing similar things to their father and looking a lot like him as well.

Danny’s mom rushed out of the car, slamming the door behind her as she went. She ran up to her brother, whose face lost its serious expression and brightened at the sight of her. He held his arms wide open for her and she ran to hug him tightly. His dad left the car slower, but with no less energy than Maddie. Jazz and Danny exited the car with a small look of trepidation, but a smile on both of their faces. They made their way towards all the commotion.

“Dan, it’s been so long!” Maddie grinned almost maniacally, and Dan grunted in affirmation. “It’s been since Jazz was born, right?” She asked and Dan nodded. She gave her brother another smile and backed away to allow her family to meet her brother.

“Jack Danny, Jazz, meet your Uncle Dan, and your cousins: Wendy, Marcus, Kevin, and Gus.” Maddie introduced. Danny and Jazz gave an awkward wave and the oldest, Wendy, gave a lazy wave back. Gus, the shortest and who Danny presumed to be the youngest looked to be bouncing on the balls of his feet with excitement.

“Nice to see you again, Dan!” Jack shouted excitedly and Dan gave a bright smile to the other large man. “How have you been?” He asked. Dan shrugged.

“Been doin’ alright. It’s been real quiet in Gravity Falls lately. How ‘bout you?” Dan replied in a deep, booming voice. The adults started to have a conversation about how they all had been doing, all of them catching up with one another.

Danny felt awkward standing there as all the kids stood together silently. Obviously Jazz was feeling the weird awkward atmosphere and tried to break it.

“Hi, I’m Jazz, as you probably know. How are you all?” She gave a tentative smile and Wendy returned it with a lazy grin. 

“Heya Jazz. I’m doing alright,” she turned to look at the youngest who looked nervous but excited at the same time. “But Gus here was super excited to meet you all. I’m surprised he hasn’t asked for your life story yet.” Wendy said, mirth present in her voice. Jazz smiled a little and looked at the youngest of the Corduroy’s. 

“Hey Gus, I haven’t had the pleasure of ever meeting you before,” Jazz started and held her hand out for the youngest to shake. She was going to say more but was cut off when Gus rammed into her for a hug. Jazz grunted out of surprise, but quickly recovered and hugged him back.

Marcus and Kevin started to poke fun at their brother when Jazz and Gus broke from their short hug. They started to play-fight with one another and Jazz started to get a little frazzled as the brothers started to roughhouse.

“So you’re Danny, right?” Wendy suddenly asked and Danny jumped. Wendy snickered and Danny could feel his face heat.  _ ‘Way to make a first impression, genius,’  _ Danny thought to himself. He nodded to answer her question, though.

“I’ve done some reading on Amity Park,” Wendy went on. “You go to Casper High, right?” She asked and Danny had a feeling he knew where this was going.

“Yeah, why?” He asked trepidatiously. Wendy’s eyes lit up and a scheming grin overtook her features. She took off her hat and brushed away some of the pine needles that had settled themselves on the bill of the cap.

“You’ve had ghost encounters then, right?” She questioned and Danny sighed.  _ ‘There goes my hope for seeming like a normal family,’  _ he thought but he nodded nonetheless. Her grin widened.

“You, my dude, have to meet my friend Dipper then.” Danny gave her a confused look.  _ ‘What was so special about ‘Dipper’?’  _ Danny asked himself. Then he asked it outloud.

“Who’s Dipper?” He wondered aloud and Wendy winked, her green eyes warm and full of mirth. 

“A friend of mine. He’s  _ really _ into supernatural stuff,” she said and Danny could feel a headache starting to come on. “You wanna meet him now?” She asked and he held his hands up in a ‘whoa whoa whoa’ gesture. Her smile dropped a little at that, to which the half-ghost stopped and shook his head rapidly, trying to make it up.

“Uh, sure. We can totally meet him now. Let’s just go ask our parents first.” Danny remedied. Wendy smirked and grabbed Danny’s wrist, dragging him over to their conversing parents with a surprisingly strong grip.

“Dad?” Danny’s Uncle Dan looked up at the sound of his daughter’s voice. He met her eyes with his own green ones. “I’m going to take Danny to meet Dipper and Mabel, if that’s okay.” She said it more like a command than anything else. Her dad nodded nevertheless and she grinned and pulled Danny along towards an old beat-up red pickup truck.

“Hey!” She hollered to Jazz and her brothers, who were all talking and laughing about something or other. They looked up at Wendy who patted the side of her truck. 

“Y’all wanna see Dipper and Mabel? I’m taking Danny to go meet them.” The three brothers and Jazz all looked at one another before they shook their heads.

“Nah, we’re good, sis.” Marcus yelled back and Wendy gave a thumbs up and unlocked the driver’s side of the truck. When she got in, she unlocked the passenger’s side and Danny climbed in.

After they got their seatbelts on, Wendy started the truck and took him on a short drive. Danny and Wendy were silent for a few minutes into the drive before the older of the two spoke up.

“I think you and Dipper’ll get along really well.” She said and Danny looked over at her, blue eyes trying to decipher why she thought that. He then decided it would probably just be better to ask.

“Why do you think that?” He questioned and she shrugged, eyes never leaving the road. She turned on the turn signal and then they were on the main road again, truck bumping along the cracked street.

“I dunno, I just have a feeling you two would get along. He’s about a year younger than you; real nerdy, awkward, the whole shebang.” She said, clicking off her turn signal as they turned up a dirt path road, not unlike the one that led up to her house. Suddenly the car stopped and Danny looked out to see a large building that had the words  _ ‘Mystery Shack’ _ on it. 

“A tourist trap?” Danny asked, confused. Wendy waved a carefree hand. 

“This is where they’re grunkles live, and where I work. They stay here for the summer.” Wendy explained and Danny mouthed the word  _ grunkle _ to himself, even more confused.

Before he could ask what a ‘grunkle’ was, Wendy turned off the truck and hopped out of it, slamming the door behind her. She gave a grin towards her cousin after he had exited the vehicle as well.

“Well, here it is, the infamous Mystery Shack.” She waved her hand around dramatically, encompassing the entire building. 

“Let’s go see if the twins are here.” Wendy said with no small amount of mirth and, for some reason, Danny felt something settle in his stomach. Like there was going to be an irreversible, huge moment for him in the next few seconds.

He followed Wendy into the Mystery Shack, door clicking shut behind them.


	2. chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny meets Dipper and Mabel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the long wait for the next chapter- school has been kicking my ass recently. hope you enjoy!

Danny had been expecting the normal tourist trap things when he walked into the Mystery Shack. And to a certain extent, there was exactly what he was expecting, but on the other, the knick knacks and models on display were… strange. One of the displays was something called a “Gremloblin”, a monster that as far as Danny could guess, was a mix between a gremlin and a goblin. It reminded the halfa of the ghosts he’d encountered that weren’t human shaped.

But it was still a very strange tourist attraction.  _ ‘Why would there be attractions like this in a town that doesn’t have ghosts?’  _ Danny asked himself and he followed Wendy further into the museum/ gift shop.

“Heya Wendy,” a gruff voice called out to the red head. Danny turned his head from the attractions to see an older man with a fez atop his head and dressed in a cheap-looking tuxedo was the one who had called out to his cousin. Wendy waved and the man waved back, but he soon looked over to see Danny standing behind his taller cousin.

“Who do we have here? A customer?” The man asked Wendy and she shook her head. She reached over and dragged Danny to stand next to her and patted his shoulder.

“Nope, this is my cousin, Danny Fenton. Danny, this is my boss and Dipper’s Grunkle Stan.” The redhead introduced and Danny and Stan looked at each other for a second before the older man held out a hand for a handshake. Danny took it a little hesitantly, but shook it anyways.

“Nice to meet you, Danny.” Stan looked at him calculatingly; like he was searching for something. Danny felt slightly awkward under the almost harsh gaze of the older man, but he stood his ground.

“Ditto,” he said. Then the awkward silence started to hit after the two of them dropped hands. Wendy cleared her throat and the tense atmosphere broke. She was giving Danny and Stan a weird look. Danny shrugged helplessly. Stan then took charge of the conversation.

“So what brings you and your cousin here? Shouldn’t you be, I dunno, catching up with one another?” Stan asked and Danny’s older cousin shrugged her shoulders.

“I was hoping to introduce him to Dipper. Apparently where he’s from, ghosts are a huge problem for them. You know how into supernatural stuff Dipper is.” She said and Stan gave a huff of a laugh.

“That’s an understatement,” the older man mumbled lowly under his breath. “So you want to see the twins?” He asked and Wendy nodded. He pointed towards a room near the back of the shop. 

“They’re upstairs in their room.” Stan said and Wendy grinned.

“Thanks, old man!” She sing-songed and grabbed Danny by his wrist (which at this point didn’t surprise him anymore) and allowed himself to be dragged to the back of the shop. Wendy opened the door, revealing there to be a home behind the museum/gift shop that was the Mystery Shack. 

What Danny assumed to be the living room looked well lived in. The TV was on with the volume low and a show called ‘Ducktectives’ on. There was a couch and a big, padded living room rocking chair. A big dinosaur head that looked to be a T-Rex’s was acting as a table with a box of tissues and a half-empty glass of water on it. There was a pig sleeping soundly on the beige carpet, which was kind of weird but who was Danny to judge? He had his casserole come alive almost every night at dinner. 

“C’mon. If you and Dipper and Mabel get along well, you’ll be around here more than often enough to see everything this house has to offer.” Wendy tugged on Danny’s wrist, pointing at the stairs. “Stan said they should be in their room, let’s go.” The halfa nodded and turned away from the strange living room. They then ascended the stairs and went up a ladder to an attic. Wendy knocked on the trapdoor.

“Hello? Anyone in there?” She called out and there were some noises of people shuffling. Then there was a small crash, to which a girlish-sounding voice yelled out “Ouch!” and then there were a few mumbles of apologies. 

“Come in!” A teen boy’s voice called back after a few more moments. Wendy opened the trapdoor that led to the attic, lifting herself up easily into the room. Danny quickly followed behind, scrambling up the rest of the ladder and closing the trapdoor behind him after he got into the room.

When Danny finally looked up after getting into the room, he was met by a girl’s face mere inches away from his. He yelped and fell backwards, feeling himself almost phase through the floor of the room.

“Hi!” The girl giggled, smiling wide enough that Danny could see the silver of her braces. She had long brown hair and was wearing a purple skirt with a pink sweater that looked hand-knit. Her cheeks were rosy with joy.

“Mabel! You know better!” Another voice with a lower cadence scolded. Danny looked over to see a skinny teenage boy who looked to be about his own age standing with his arms crossed.

The boy had on a fluffy hat with the ear flaps down, which was weird to Danny since it  _ was _ the summer. He also was wearing a dark blue vest with a salmon t-shirt underneath. He had bags under his eyes that signaled that he probably didn’t sleep all too well, which Danny could relate to. His nose was slightly sunburnt, but he was decently tan which made the halfa think that he was from a place with a lot of sun. He also then noticed that the two of the brunettes looked very similar.

_ ‘That  _ would  _ make sense,’  _ Danny thought to himself as he regained his bearings,  _ ‘they were referred to as ‘twins’ _ . The girl, who Danny assumed to be Mabel, pouted slightly, but was quick to go back to her sun-shiney smile.

“I was just saying hi, Dippin’ Dots!” She grinned and Dipper sighed, obviously used to the explanation. The brown-haired boy went over and bent down, holding a hand out for Danny. He took it gratefully and Dipper helped heave him up. 

As Danny brushed off the dust from the back of his jeans, he took a quick look around the room. There was a triangle window that showed the front of the building with a short table that served as a nightstand for both of the twins’ beds. Danny could obviously tell which one was which as the colors on the one to his right were striking and pink with a unicorn plushie sitting upright and leaning up against the wall. The bed on the left had a much calmer blue with three worn-looking books or journals near it. There was a lamp and sewing kit lying on the nightstand. Danny could imagine that the twins were night owls; especially Dipper, what with those dark eye bags underneath his eyes.

“Sorry for my sister,” Dipper apologized and Danny waved his hand around in an uncaring manner. 

“Nah, she’s fine. I’ve got a sister of my own, I know how it is.” Danny explained and Dipper nodded and looked to Wendy as if to ask who Danny was without actually asking the halfa. She gave him a small grin.

“Mabel, Dipper, this is my cousin Danny from Amity Park.” She introduced and Danny gave an awkward wave by lieu of a more normal greeting. Mabel immediately jumped up while Dipper got a questioning look on his face.

“Hi, Danny! How are you?” Mabel greeted with no small amount of exuberance. Danny was thankful he was used to his father’s own excitableness.

“I’m alright. How are you?” He asked in return and Mabel suddenly went off on a long rant about how she was doing. Danny could barely keep up; she was talking a mile a minute. She had said something about “no cute mermaids this year” which gave Danny pause. 

_ ‘Mermaids? Are there mermaid ghosts here?’ _ He wondered when Dipper suddenly interrupted his sister.

“You’re from Amity Park, right? Like,  _ the _ Amity Park?” The male twin asked and Danny nodded slowly. He looked to Wendy for help, feeling confused as Dipper’s eyes lit up.

“Isn’t that place haunted by, like, tons of ghosts?” He questioned excitedly and the half-ghost nodded hesitantly. Dipper’s eyes somehow lit up even more at that and he gave his twin an excited look.

“Do you believe in ghosts, then?” Danny asked after a few seconds of silence had passed. Wendy, Mabel, and Dipper all looked at each other and laughed a little. Danny felt like he was missing something, like an inside joke as they all giggled. 

“Yeah, it’s hard  _ not _ to believe in them when you have been held hostage by some of them and force your brother to do the lamby-” Mabel started and Dipper slapped a hand over her mouth. He looked nervous and gave his sister a glare.

“We believe in ghosts, basically.” Mabel was giggling again and Dipper shot her another glare. Danny looked to his cousin with a question in his blue eyes, but she just smirked and shrugged her shoulders in a helpless-like motion. Danny shook his head, and cleared his throat.

“What do you mean you were held hostage by ghosts?” Danny asked with disbelief present in his voice. He didn’t realize there was another portal to the ghost zone here. Usually his parents would’ve spoken about ghost sightings in a place they were going to be visiting.

“We were held captive in a corner store by an old couple that hated teenagers,” Dipper explained. He looked confident enough as he said it, so Danny believed him that he  _ was _ actually trapped by ghosts. He looked to Wendy for confirmation and she nodded.

“Yeah we were. But Dipper,” she tugged him close and gave him a noogie, “saved us.” Dipper laughed and batted her hands away. Danny raised an eyebrow, impressed.

“How’d you save them? Did you have ecto-weapons or something?” Danny asked. Dipper looked at him with confusion. 

“What’s an ecto-weapon?” The male twin questioned. Wendy also looked at Danny with a confused gleam in her eyes. Mabel was just looking back and forth between her brother and the half-ghost, looking like she was watching a very interesting tennis match.

“It’s a weapon made of ectoplasm, the same thing that ghosts are made of,” Danny explained, “my parents make weapons with ectoplasm. It’s one of the few things that can hurt ghosts.” Dipper’s eyes widened at that.

“Your parents make ghost weapons?” Dipper sounded astonished. Danny nodded his head slowly. Wendy butted in, a look of recognition on her freckled face.

“Aren’t your parents ghost hunters and scientists or something?” She asked and the halfa nodded in affirmation.

“Yeah, they’re the most famous ghost hunters in our town. They also build most of the ghost hunting weapons in the ghost-hunting community.” Danny explained. Dipper’s eyes looked like everything was just revealed to him on a silver platter. His smile was infectious.

“Whoa! That’s so cool! I- I mean like, your parents are ghost hunters?” Dipper’s eyes somehow lit up even more. “Does that mean they’ve caught an actual live ghost before?” He asked excitedly, looking like he was about to start vibrating with excitement. 

_ ‘Heh, that’s kinda cute,’  _ Danny thought to himself as the other teen started to blab about something or other. The black-haired boy then paused.  _ ‘Wait,’ _ he thought,  _ ‘did I just-’ _ .

“-anny? Hey Danny? You in there?” A girl’s voice broke through his disbelief. He then realized it was his cousin. Wendy was looking at him with concern in her green eyes. Mabel and Dipper were also giving him looks of apprehension. He shook his head, placing an awkward smile on his lips. He put a hand on the back of his neck in embarrassment.

“Sorry, zoned out there,” he apologized. “What were you saying?” Dipper regarded Danny carefully before he returned to his excited rambling. Danny was half-way paying attention, too caught up in his thoughts to be listening fully.  _ ‘Did I just call Dipper cute? But…’ _ The halfa shook his head subtly and cleared his mind. He should be paying attention to whatever Dipper was saying.

As Dipper was asking him a question about whether or not he’s been in contact with a ghost, suddenly Danny’s ghost sense went off. All three of the other occupants of the room froze as Danny shivered in the warmth of the room. It was all the halfa could do to hold back his groan.

_ ‘So much for a summer vacation,’ _ he thought bitterly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)


	3. chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> dipper and mabel go to gravity falls.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ayooo i've been trying to write this anytime i have freetime, but it's hard with school. hopefully this doesn't have many mistakes haha.

Dipper was expecting a more normal summer this year. Well, as “normal” as Gravity Falls could get, at least. He was excited to see all of his friends again, and so was Mabel. His twin sister had been talking his ear off about what she was going to do this summer. Dipper was thankful that she had gotten out of her slump from the whole Weirdmageddon thing- she had been having trouble forgiving herself for everything. Even after everyone had told her that they had forgiven her, she still had trouble forgiving  _ herself _ \- something Dipper could relate to.

Despite all that, Mabel had seemed to be in high spirits, much like her usual self, so Dipper didn’t ask for fear of setting her off. Monsters Dipper could understand, but girls? No chance in hell.

The young teenagers, after they had said goodbye to their parents, were on their way to Gravity Falls to live with their grunkles for the summer. The plane ride was short, but the bus ride was long. Dipper took off Wendy’s hat, setting it in his lap to idly play with the flaps for the ears while the bus rolled down the bumpy, pot-hole covered road. Mabel was leaning up against the window, asleep as it was only seven in the morning. Her soft breathing and the hum of the bus’ engine were the only sounds that kept Dipper company.

As much as Dipper loved Wendy’s hat, and as often that he had worn it, he couldn’t wait to get his  _ real _ hat back. The comfort of the blue pine tree-labeled hat felt like a second skin to him at the end of the previous summer. Wendy’s hat was only a promise that he would come back again. 

Dipper turned to look out the window, the sunrise casting a deep shadow on the trees. He almost wanted to get his nice camera from the overhead compartment, but he felt a sense of serenity as he sat on the rumbling bus, sleeping sister at his side.

The young teen hoped that this summer would be just as fun as the last, if not a  _ lot _ less stressful than the one previous. He could do without world-ending, time-and-space-altering, dream demons for a couple thousand years.

_ ‘I hope I get to make even more discoveries this year,’  _ he thought to himself in the quiet atmosphere of the bus,  _ ‘and even more friends’ _ .

***

The bus arriving at Gravity Falls at noon felt like a godsend. Mabel (and, admittedly, Dipper) were both vibrating with excitement in their seats, waiting for the next stop to come. The last five stops had felt like they were taking hours long, even though they were only twenty to forty minutes apart from each other.

When the bus finally stopped at a stop with a huge wooden sign that read  _ ‘Gravity Falls’ _ , Mabel shoved Dipper out of the way to hop out of the seat and grab her bags from the overhead compartment. He scrambled to follow her, swiftly grabbing his stuff and slamming the compartment closed with a loud, satisfying  _ click _ . A couple of elderly people smiled warmly at the sight of the young teens clambering over each other to exit the bus. The twins paid them no mind, their focus solely on getting off the bus as quickly as possible.

Once they made their way off the bus, they were hit with the strong scent of fresh air and pine trees that they had come to associate with Gravity Falls. Dipper felt a grin take over his face. They were finally back after three seasons of waiting.

“Dipper!” His sister called out and he suddenly realized that Mabel wasn’t standing right next to him anymore. He looked around for a few moments before he found her standing next to their grunkles. She was waving him over frantically, excitement coming off of her in waves. 

When Dipper finally made it over to his family, lugging his suitcases behind him which slowed him down, his Grunkle Stan and Ford smiled at him.

“C’mon, Space Cadet. We’ve got places to be.” Teased Stan. Dipper rolled his eyes in a fashion that only teenagers could pull off before his grin took over his face once again. Mabel’s eyes were shining with untold excitement.

“Yeah, Dipper. We’ve got places to be!” Mabel said impishly and Dipper, with his free hand, shoved her playfully. She gave a sound of mock disbelief and then they broke down into giggles. Ford’s gruff but kind voice broke through their laughter.

“Let’s get a move on,” he said and herded them towards the waiting car. Ford helped the twins put their luggage in the car trunk as Stan went and started the vehicle. Once the car came to life, and the twins had all their stuff in the trunk of the car, Ford, Mabel, and Dipper all piled in. They were all buckled in when Stan turned down the radio and looked through the rearview mirror. 

“Ready?” He asked and Dipper nodded.

“Let’s go!” Mabel demanded, pointing her finger in the wrong direction of the Mystery Shack. Dipper subtly moved her arm in the right direction. Ford gave a warm smile at the sight, turning to look at Stan.

“You heard the lady, onward!” Ford exclaimed. Stan grumbled something about being ordered around by his bossy brother before the engine roared and they were peeling out of their parking spot onto the bumpy road that led to the Mystery Shack. Mabel was animatedly retelling their school year in California, almost slapping Dipper as she talked. Ford was talking about discoveries he and Stan had made on their expeditions (something Dipper wanted to hear a  _ lot _ more about) while Stan chimed in to either correct his brother, or make fun of him.

Dipper thought that this was going to be the best summer of his life.

***

Dipper thought that this was going to be the weirdest summer of his life; which was saying something. Whether it was saying something about  _ him _ or his  _ situations  _ was a different topic altogether. 

The object that led Dipper to think that his summer would be very strange was a teen named Danny Fenton. At first glance, the slightly older teen looked normal, if a bit on the skinny side. He had messy black hair and strikingly icy blue eyes, wearing jeans in the summer heat and a white and red t-shirt. He looked almost completely average- almost  _ too _ average.

Then Dipper found out that Danny’s parents were  _ ghost hunters. _ From  _ Amity Park.  _ the most haunted place in the world. They had multiple ghost sightings nearly every day, most of them being violent and dangerous to humans. And as if that wasn’t enough, Danny’s parents were the most famous ghost hunters living. Their research, while often cast aside by non-believers in the scientific community, was some of best and most reliable out there. Dipper had only read a couple of their articles before he realized he understood almost none of it- all of it being riddled with terminology that Dipper couldn’t simply decipher with a quick Google search. 

What also made Amity Park so interesting was their self-proclaimed ghost hero called Danny Phantom. Phantom was an anomaly in many ways, according to what Dipper  _ could _ understand from their research. The specter fought against ghosts to seemingly protect  _ humans _ \- something unheard of. He also looked far too human, according to Maddie Fenton, as a ghost of his power should look much more ghastly and inhuman due to their powers growing and manifesting themselves as vectors for their powers. Another fact that made him an outlier was that sometimes when he was talking, he referred to himself as having a “life” or “living”, as if he hadn’t fully accepted that he was dead.

Dipper couldn’t decide if he thought that was more sad than anything else. In the few blurry pictures the brown-haired teen had seen, Phantom had looked like a teenager.  _ ‘I wonder if that means that he died when he was my age,’  _ Dipper had thought to himself one night while lying in bed. He sobered at the thought and had moved onto reading about a ghost called Plasmius- the so-called arch-enemy of Phantom.

Anyways, the point Dipper was trying to get at was that Danny Fenton may seem normal by himself, but his heritage and where he was from made him strange.

“Sorry, zoned out there. What were you saying?” Danny had asked after Wendy had broken the teen from his stupor. He looked embarrassed, a hand on the back of his neck signaling his emotions clearly. His eyes flickered from Wendy and Mabel’s to Dipper’s, his cheeks flushing when he got to Dipper. The brown-haired boy just assumed that it was from his self-consciousness. 

“Anyways,” Dipper started, “have you ever been in contact with a ghost before? I’ve heard that your school has attacks there almost daily.” He asked Danny, who seemed to be close to zoning out again. Dipper was about to say something to get his attention again when the other teen suddenly shivered. Dipper could’ve almost sworn he saw Danny’s breath, which was impossible in the summer heat of the attic. The weirdest part was that the other teen just looked disgruntled, like there was something annoying him rather than anything else.

“Hey,” Danny spoke up and Dipper was broken from his own thoughts at the voice. “Can you tell me where the bathroom is?” He asked and Dipper looked at him with a slightly confused expression. 

“Down the ladder and to the right.” Mabel answered him, wary uncertainty present in her voice. Wendy was also giving him a weird look. Danny, however, didn’t seem to notice or care. He quickly made his way to the ladder that led out of the attic, not meeting anyone’s gaze as he did so.

_ ‘How strange,’ _ Dipper thought to himself as the mess of black hair disappeared as he went down the ladder to the second floor. He looked to Wendy and Mabel, as if trying to see if they had an answer to Danny’s sudden need to use the bathroom. The redhead shrugged.

“When you’ve gotta go dude, you’ve gotta go.” She said and Mabel giggled a little at that. Before Dipper could answer he heard a loud crash and the sound of crunching wood outside the Mystery Shack. He, his sister, and Wendy all scrambled to the window and looked outside to see a fallen tree with a green smoke rising off of it. Dipper also saw small blobs of glowing green stuff lying on the ground, its fumes a radioactive green.

“What the hell…” Wendy whispered quietly and her eyes were starting to brim with fear. Dipper and Mabel shared a concerned look, her gripping the bottom hem of his t-shirt. 

_ ‘What just happened?’ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tell me what you think! :D

**Author's Note:**

> thoughts?


End file.
